The invention pertains to the general field of decorative lighting and more particularly to a battery operated, gasless tube that simulates the characteristics of a conventional neon tube.
One of the most popular and efficient means of attracting attention to a particular location or event is by using neon lighting. Since neon provides a unique type of bright glowing light, which can be created in various colors, neon is effective during daylight as well as nighttime.
Unfortunately, neon lighting does have some drawbacks. In order to use neon lighting a neon gas must be inserted into the tube and a relatively high voltage must be applied and maintained to keep the neon gas illuminated. Since the tubes in which the neon gas is held are made of glass, they are fragile and can easily break. When compared to other types of lighting, neon is expensive, especially when the neon lighting is made into a custom design once these drawbacks, as well as others, are taken into consideration, many people choose to use other more conventional types of lighting, even though a neon light would result in superior lighting.
Obviously, if there were some means of providing neon-like lighting without the inherent drawbacks of neon, it would be very beneficial. There have been attempts in the prior art to mimic neon light with conventional light that is projected or reflected/refracted off of, or through various types of lenses. While some of these efforts have been partially successful, the results are often achieved through more difficulty, complexity and expense than actual neon. The only truly effective replacement for neon will have to utilize a method that is less complex and is less expensive than actual neon, while providing a type of illumination that is substantially similar.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any literature or patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention. However, the following U.S. patents are considered related:
The U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,623 discloses a resilient watertight light baton having a multi-colored solid-state light source and a power source mounted therein. The exterior walls of the light baton are machined to effectively transmit light form the light source. By pressing a single button the baton turns on and a steady color is emitted. By pressing the button again the color changes. By pressing and holding the button down, the selected color flashes. All interior electronics and solid state light sources are sealed from the outside atmosphere, thus making baton an explosion proof and waterproof design.
The U.S. Pat. No. 6,183,108 discloses a lighting apparatus, which includes a lens, such as a circular rod carried by a housing. A light is positioned adjacent the circular rod which has a convex entry portion and a convex exit portion to distribute a wide and intense beam of light to a desired area. Variations of the apparatus allow for distribution of the light in any desired pattern, either downward or outward. The apparatus eliminates the need for reflectors to assist in generating the beam, although mirrors may be employed to generate a triple high-intensity beam from a single light source.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,063 discloses a light stick comprising an LED and a light-refracting tubular body having a longitudinal axis and made of a translucent or transparent plastic material. The tubular body tapers from a first open end of larger diameter to a second closed end of smaller diameter. The LED is mounted in the open end of the tubular body with the power source housed in an adjoining cap which is fitted onto the open end. The LED is aligned with the longitudinal axis of the tubular body, and a light-refracting network, is formed on the internal surface of the body to project light emitted by the LED towards the side and the closed end for the tubular body. In operation, the light rays are refracted and radiated and appear to glow evenly along the entire length of the light stick. The tapered surface allows easy disengagement of the tubular body form the plastic injection mold and works efficiently with many different electrical light sources.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,524 discloses a resilient watertight light baton that utilizes a multi-colored light source and power source mounted therein. The exterior walls of the light baton are machined to effectively transmit light form the light source. The body of the light baton further includes a ring switch that includes a magnetic portion. As the ring switch is rotated and the magnetic portion is brought proximate to the magnetic switches the light source is activated.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,679 discloses a light transmitting body having a longitudinal axis and a light radiating surface extending substantially parallel to the axis. The body is an optical fiber, wherein the light radiating surface is the circumferential surface of the fiber. A plurality of striations are formed in the light radiating surface parallel to the axis which cause light entering the body along the axis to be radiated out of the body through the light radiating surface with substantially uniform intensity along the axis. The striations may be formed by molding, cold drawing, heating the body under tension, cutting, or by bundling and fusing a plurality of small optical fibers together.
The invention is designed to simulate the appearance and glow of a neon-light.
The simulated neon-light tube in its basic design is comprised of:
A. A transparent tube having an inner surface, a closed front end, an open rear edge, a front outer surface, and a rear outer surface.
B. A light-diffusing material having a front terminus and a rear terminus.
C. A light source located within the open rear edge of the tube.
D. A power source connected to the light source, wherein when the light source is activated by the power source, the light is refracted along the light-diffusing material simulating the glow of a neon-light tube.
The transparent tube can be molded of glass or plastic, with a plastic material preferred. The length and diameter of the tube is dependent upon its ultimate usage. The diameter can range from 0.25 inches (0.635 cm) to 2.0 inches (5.08 cm).
The light-diffusing material is made of a plastic film having the properties that allow light to be evenly refracted along the length of the tube. The material, which has a preferred thickness of 0.002 mils, is stacked, rolled and inserted through the open rear edge of the transparent tube. When inserted, the front end of the rolled material is juxtaposed against the closed front end of the tube and the rear terminus is located adjacent the open rear edge of the tube. Thus, the light-diffusing material substantially covers the entire inner surface of the tube.
To cause the light-diffusing material to glow, a light source, which consists of at least one light emitting diode (LED) is utilized. The LED is located within the open rear edge of the tube adjacent the rear terminus of the light-diffusing material. The color of the LED or LEDs can be selected to provide singular colors of if the LEDs are in selected in clusters of different colors a blended color is produced.
To activate the invention, a power source is connected to the LED(s). The power source can be self-contained or can be hard-wired to a remote location. In the self-contained design an integrated, light/power assembly is employed that contains both the LED(s) and a set of batteries. The assembly is dimensioned to frictionally fit into the open rear edge of the tube. In the hard-wired design the assembly contains the LED which is connected to a front end of a cable having a second end that is connected to an external battery.
In view of the above disclosure, the primary object of the invention is to produce a simulated neon-light assembly that:
can be used in place of conventional neon lights,
does not require the use of a gas, such as neon or argon or a phosphorescent substance,
can be easily made of various lengths and diameters,
can be made to include a single light source on one-end of a tube or the light source can be included to both ends of a tube,
can be made in various colors,
is cost effective from both a consumer""s and manufacturer""s point of view, and
is releasably and virtually maintenance free.